Trends & Data About the Future – Good & Bad News

Since the creation of the German Shepherd Dog breed (GSD) at the turn of the twentieth century, it has become one of the most popular international breeds. Over the years, the function and phenotype of the breed has changed from that of a medium-size dog needed to meet its original farming and herding purposes to a variety of subsequent roles ranging from guarding, detection, police, herding, guide dog, show dog and companion. Now, despite its historic popularity, reports from three countries suggest that the popularity of this breed may be nearing a decline.

One of the first reports about these declines came from the UK when they called attention to registrations for the German Shepherd Dog breed. The UK reported that between 2007 and 2016, GSD registrations declined from 4.5% of all registrations (12,116 of 270,707 registrations) to 3.4% (7,751 of 227,708 registrations). A second report about the GSD breed followed from the SV (Germany). In 2007, the SV reported 2,018 registered litters which produced 10,000 GSD puppies. Data for Long Coated GSD’s are reported separately. When the 84 Long Coated litters which produced 404 pups are added to the data for normal coats, the total number of GSD’s registered in Germany was 10,404 pups. Average litter size was 5.1 pups. In 2013, the SV reported 2,300 litters that included Long Coats for a total of 11,500 registered pups. Average litter size did not change. While the total number of litters increased only slightly, the SV reported that entries at specialty shows were down “minimally”. In 2017, the SV re- ported that entries at the Sieger Show were stable with competitors from 54 nations. Because each country reports data differently, analysis and comparisons between countries is difficult given the formats used for reporting and the rules used to govern their events. That said, breed trends and show entries can be useful. Table 1 shows trends in three countries.